What should Steve Yzerman do to improve Wings if he stays?

The Detroit Red Wings saw a sizable lead for a spot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs dwindle and ultimately vanish with time still to go in the regular season.

Now, having again missed the playoffs for a 10th consecutive season and taking over the unfortunate distinction of the NHL’s longest postseason drought, pressure is starting to mount on general manager Steve Yzerman.

If Yzerman returns, he’ll be tasked with undoing the damage his moves to add to the roster did at the trade deadline while trying to find the right mix of players to get over the hump.

On Tuesday’s episode of Daily Faceoff LIVE, host Tyler Yaremchuk and co-host and former NHL goaltender Carter Hutton were joined by NHL insider David Pagnotta to discuss what Yzerman’s next moves could be if he survives the late-season collapse.

Tyler Yaremchuk: Obviously disappointment in Detroit once again, officially eliminated from the playoffs over the last 72 hours here. You know, we had [Jeff] Marek on last week, and he kind of threw cold water on the idea that a GM change could be coming. He’s not sure if Chris Illitch really wants to walk down that path. So let’s walk down the path of Steve Yzerman stays in Detroit. Well, what’s he gonna do? Like surely Steve Yzerman, if he’s given one more crack at this, isn’t just gonna sit on his hands, cross his fingers and go, ‘Boy, I hope we win more next year.’ He’s got to do something here.

David Pagnotta: Yeah he does, and I agree with Jeff. I don’t think I don’t think Stevie’s going anywhere unless he wants to… but I can’t see that happening. This game plan that he’s put together, this Yzer-plan, has been always long-term. Now it’s extended probably longer than a lot of us have anticipated, but the cupboard is deep. They filled up the prospects, the prospect pool. They still have draft picks to play with. Now, not all of these kids are gonna hit but it gives them ammunition to make moves… I think Detroit’s gonna be in that mix as well of teams looking to make bigger moves this offseason to start to take those next steps like the Ducks have taken, like the Sens have taken, like Montreal, specifically, has taken. Buffalo to a degree. I think more changes are coming on that front for them, and I think they kind of have to.

You can watch the full segment and the rest of the episode here…